In Opposition to H.R. 3230 and H.J. Res 72
Floor Speech
Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to both H.R. 3230 and H.J. Res. 72, two bills which claim to fund our veterans and our National Guard and Reserve but are nothing but a political ploy and a piecemeal approach that do nothing to address many of the crucial services relied on by our military and veterans.
Let me be clear. Every member of Congress fully supports our National Guard and Reserve and our veterans. Yet neither of the two bills we considered today actually accomplish this objective.
Although H.R. 3230 does provide for the pay and allowances of military personnel in the reserve component who are in inactive status, it does not fund other essential programs and services to support our military, like equipment needed for readiness; military maintenance and procurement; and research and development for technological superiority of U.S. forces.
H.J. Res. 72 also neglects to fund several critical programs for veterans, including the delivery of veterans' health care services, grants to state veterans homes, and funding for the VA's Office of Inspector General. In fact, this bill represents a $6.2 billion reduction in funding for the VA compared to the bipartisan MilCon/VA appropriations bill passed overwhelmingly earlier this year.
So H.J. Res. 72 is not a vote to fund our veterans; it is a vote to cut veterans funding. In addition, it would leave their children and grandchildren behind without funding for programs like Head Start or medical research to cure the diseases that harm our veterans and every other citizen. Taken together, these two bills fail to equip and train our troops or build housing for their families.
The fact is that we do have a way to solve this issue today. If we take up the Senate's clean continuing resolution, we can send it to the President for his signature tonight. The clean CR also provides $6 billion more in funding for the VA and veteran's programs compared to the piecemeal bill offered today. That is why I call on my colleagues to bring up the clean CR so we can end this shut down and pave the way for full and immediate funding for our National Guard, our military reserves, and our veterans.
Source